Never before in the annals of mankind has the phrase, “you can’t miss it,” been more appropriate than when applied to the Dickey Tree Services fire truck parked on U.S. Highway 63 in Portia AR. One simply does not expect to see a life sized “Elvis,” holding forth (in silence) from atop the cab of a retired fire truck turned tree services truck. Not in your wildest tequila induced dreams. But when you wheel into Portia AR, population 483, there it is. You are not dreaming. It is for real.

You will see what appears to be an old Chevy attempting to open a new drive in at a salvage yard and you will begin to understand the high value of “bizarre” in our society. The business has taken a unique decorative track to grab the attention of passers-by.

Dickey Tree Services fire truck complete with "The King." Notice the small "Elvis" perched on top of the ladder.

The fire truck and Elvis are the handy work of Ed Dickey, proprietor of Dickey Tree Services. Ed Dickey and his crew are, until I hear a better term, “internists for trees.” Rather than hacking limbs off, Dickey and crew apply tree “medications” to cure afflicted trees, a noble undertaking. Since Dickey’s patients cannot come to the office and some are several stories tall, the retired hook and ladder truck makes good sense. With regards to Elvis, Emerson said it best, “Hitch your wagon to a star.”

Dickey Tree Services trailer and fire truck

Rain, rain, go away!

On another matter, down here in LA (lower Arkansas), we are making a supplication to turn the spigot off for a while. We understand that April showers bring May flowers. And we like how a nice rain populates waterfalls. But enough is is enough. Moderation in all things please. Amen

Rain on windshield at Taylor's Auto Salvage. Enough already!

Back in the seventies, the Carpenters, featuring the idyllic voice of Karen Carpenter, created “Rainy Days,” now considered a classic comment on a day like to today, a rainy Monday.

See more fire trucks and pictures from Taylor’s Auto Salvage, our bizarre and bizarrer stories of the week, in our Weekly Grist Gallery. Who’s more bizarre, who knows, that’s up to you. If you decide, you can let the world know with a comment below.

Wide angle distortion deceives you into believing these falls on Bidville Road near Winslow, Arkansas are not tall. The fact is, they are at least 20 feet tall and perhaps a bit more. Ice is forming in the pool and icicles have formed adjacent to the falls. A hike of a quarter mile or so across rocky terrain is necessary to see the falls as you see them here.

The story of these falls started on the Photo of the Week page at Corndancer dot com. To see another picture of the falls and formations close by, click here go to Corndancer dot com, a very cool thing to do.

While exploring the territory where these falls reside, I had the good fortune of running into Eugene Provence, a lifelong resident of the area. His good advice helped me find the way to the falls. Eugene makes his living driving a truck over twisting, precarious gravel roads in this parts, the Boston Range of the Ozark Mountains out of Winslow, Arkansas.

Eugene Providence skillfully drives this truck over twisting, turning mountain gravel roads which are far from the ideal venue for large trucks. I was taken aback when I first encountered the truck approaching a one lane bridge I was approaching from the opposite direction. You simply do not expect to meet 18-wheelers this far back in the boondocks.

Eugene Provence at the wheel of his big White tractor.

Before the day was over, I met three of the Providence family including Eugene, his father, and a Provence nephew to boot. To the man, they were outgoing, friendly, and helpful. It is not often that one meets strangers out of the clear blue sky who put for such demeanor. Good upbringing I suppose.

As you face the falls, to the right is a steep cliff, probably the height of a five story building. Bidville road runs not far from the drop off. Eugene said at one time a truck and trailer hauling a bulldozer went over the edge. It’s not a stretch of the imagination to see how that could happen.

As you face the falls at the base, this bluff is to your right. The right of way for Bidville Road is not far from the edge. Icicles dangle from the edge. BRRRRRRR it was cold!

View from the top

This is looking down the bluff at the falls from the shoulder of Bidville Road. The white objects at the bottom center left of the picture are the ice formed in the pool below the falls. You can barely see the small cascades of water running down the bluff from the vicinity of the large rock to the right center of the picture. It is a long drop.

As I was setting the tripod up at the edge of the road to get the shot above, Jason Provence, related to Eugene, stopped as he drove by to caution me about the bluff. I thanked him and told him that if he came back by in about 30 minutes or so and the truck was still there, but I wasn’t, to kindly extract what was left of me from the bottom. Fortunately, that was not necessary.

This terrain is at the approach to the falls as you hike in. It is typically replete with rocks, boulders and fallen timber knocked down by a severe ice storm last January. The low angle to the shot is due to the fact that yours truly is sitting on his back side after losing his footing, taking a dive and unceremoniously assuming that ground-level position. I figured as long as I was there I might as well record the event.

The boondocks around Winslow and anywhere else do not go into hibernation and disappear when the weather turns cold and the leaves drop. It is a good time of the year to see things you won’t see when leaves are on the trees. I’ll have more to say about that in a later diatribe.

Our headquarters for this foray was Sky-Vue cabins, just a mile or so south of Winslow on US Highway 71. A clean, well-lighted place with great breakfasts and gracious hosts.